With Summer-Coloured Smiles 1, 2, Jump!
by Lucia Hunter
Summary: MakiRin, and other pairings. Summer wing! μ's passion is bursting in the summer heat, to what sort of future will their feelings lead them? (Summer Arc of my 'Songs of Muse; Songs for You' series; standalone.)
1. V1C1: Plans For The Week Ahead

**Author's Note: Hello once again, people. Welcome to the Summer Arc of my 'Songs of Muse; Songs for You' series. :D I've spent a loooong time thinking about this, before finally settling on this second set of pairings that seemed rather popular. I should note that the pairings in the Autumn Arc are my personal OTPs, but that doesn't mean I will let the quality of this set drop either. I intend every bit as much to do them justice as well. (Still, this is very, very much an uphill battle for me so I'll really be needing everyone's support to let me know if I'm doing it right orz)**

**I will be putting the entire arc in one fic alone and updating the summary as I go along. Again, this was how my Autumn arc should have been like if I had actually planned to write that much from the start. ^^" And oh, reading the Autumn arc first is not necessary. They're standalones even if they're in the same series.**

**So, on to our first pairing! ****Please enjoy.**

* * *

**Volume One: Beat in Angel**

**Chapter 1: Plans For The Week Ahead**

Not for the first time, the tension in the clubroom felt so thick the atmosphere was oppressive. All nine members of the Idol Research Club were gathered on a scorching hot Friday in the summer, hiding away from the heat within their clubroom. Though most of them were sitting down with their backs straight, rapt with attention at the scene that was going on, Honoka, Eli and Umi were standing up at the centre of the table facing each other off.

"This is it. This will decide everything," Eli stated ominously. In front of her lay a neatly kept folder with a tidy stack of papers, its pages filled with legal writ and business terminology, nigh incomprehensible to most people their age. It had taken the blonde girl half a day to read it carefully before going with Nico to get it approved and signed by Kotori's mother. As the principal of Otonokizaka Academy, it was her who had control and responsibility over the external activities of the Idol Research Club.

Just beside her, Umi was no less tense, her cold steely eyes betraying none of her normal gentle self. "Just so we're clear, it's the loser who has to go."

"Fuee... Loser? Don't put it that way, you make it sound so bad, Umi-chan..." That was Honoka, who laughed it off with an awkward smile as a bead of sweat dripped down the side of her forehead. Rather than from the heat, it was from the sheer amount of concentration she was putting in at the moment.

After all, none of them wanted to lose.

"Does that mean you want to go then, Honoka?"

"Ehhhh..."

"Okay, that's enough," Eli raised her hand behind her. "Let's just get this over with."

With a gulp from Honoka and a furrowing of Umi's brows, both second-years mimicked her actions. As for the rest of the table, everyone leaned forward subconsciously, drawn in by the importance of what was about to transpire.

"Jan-ken-pon!" All three cried out simultaneously, bringing their hands forward.

Time slowed down as the hands descended, gradually changing into their chosen postures. Focused as the three were on their actions, it was the other club members who had a multitude of expressions on their faces. Kotori and Hanayo were already clutching on to each other in fear, Rin was practically biting her fingers with her nervousness, Nico had her own hands twisted into her usual Nico-nii pose as though that would help, and even Maki had abandoned her usual air of disinterest with her eyes fixated on the trio. Only Nozomi had an air of calm about her as she watched on, a tarot card in her hand.

All activity in the clubroom ceased as the result became clear in the centre, and everyone's brains slowly processed what it meant.

Honoka had thrown out Rock. Both Eri and Umi had chosen Paper.

"Noooooooo!" Honoka yelled as she jumped backwards in disbelief. "This can't be!"

Across the table while the ginger-head was distracted, Eli shot Umi a sly secretive wink, causing the blue-haired archer to smile with the faintest tinge of red on her cheeks. "Well, that's decided then," Eli announced. "Honoka, Hanayo and Kotori will be taking the job. For the whole of next week you three will be handing out flyers for the new mall's opening."

"Just as predicted." The card that the club's resident spiritual girl Nozomi flipped over bore the image of a man walking towards the edge of a cliff, titled 'The Fool'.

"Mou Nozomi-chan, don't act like it was already set in stone! Also what do you mean that card is supposed to symbolize me?!"

"Honoka-chan..." Kotori had tears in her eyes as she shot an angry look at her childhood friend, though the overall effect of her tear-filled eyes, upturned pout and clenched fists beneath her face was more adorable than anything else. "Honoka-chan you idiot! You've always thrown rock first ever since we were kids!"

Upon hearing that the leader of Muse was stunned into silence, stumbling backwards even further and propping herself up with the shelves filled with school idol memorabilia. Years upon years of memories went through her mind in a flash, as she reviewed everything that had ever happened in her life to the best of her ability. From her earliest memory of wandering into the shop portion of the house as a child lured by the smell of sweets, through what remained of her memories of elementary and middle school, all the way to the present moment here in Otonokizaka Academy. Right there and then in the clubroom, Honoka reflected on her life choices.

Or more specifically every jan-ken-pon choice she had ever made.

"Uoooohhhhh! So that's why Umi-chan always beat me!"

Her answer was met with a chorus of palms meeting faces in exasperation. Most days despite her capabilities, it seemed Honoka possessed a special level of denseness that was unreachable by mere mortals.

"It's not my fault, things always happen so fast I don't have time to think so I just don't open my hands..." With flailing arms, Honoka turned to her blue-haired childhood friend. "Umi-chan that's unfair! I demand a rematch!"

"Absolutely not. A victory is a victory, Honoka. You can't redo things just because they didn't go your way. It's your own fault for being so predictable."

"That's just taking advantage of me Umi-chan! Did all those years of friendship really mean that little to you?!"

"Of course not. It's precisely because of all those years with you that I could even do this today. Please do a good job over the next week." Umi was ruthless in ending the argument with her words, leaving the ginger-haired girl with nothing to do but sink back into her seat, the unhappy glower on her face apparent to all. Well, it was a life-or-death situation. And someone had to be the sacrificial lamb.

It had all begun a week back when an email had come into the club's mailbox, making an offer that had seemed irresistible: a chance to perform as the only act at the official opening ceremony of the city's newest mall, in the very streets of Shibuya. The man in charge of the mall's marketing division had come across their performance in Akiba some time ago and had become quite an ardent fan, and was willing to offer them priority above other bands or idol groups, as well as total coverage of the mini-stage and sound equipment costs.

At the time it had seemed like nothing but a godsend to the girls, an easy way to make a big break that would undoubtedly send waves into the school idol scene and skyrocket them within the Love Live! competition rankings. At least, until they received the additional terms. Due to a sudden shortage of manpower, they also needed to assist in handing out flyers for the entire week leading up to the performance. On the bright side, only three people were needed and they would at least be paid for the trouble.

On the other hand, one of them would have to be wearing a full-body mascot costume at all times. In the summer heat, even in the late afternoons and continuing into the stifling nights, that could very well be near fatal. No matter how much they were paid, none of them felt possibly that hard up for money that they would take such a job on. So it was for no minor reason that everyone considered this a life-or-death situation, a survival of the fittest scenario. For the sake of the nine, three of them would have to be sacrificed.

It had been Eli's suggestion that they send one of the mini-units to do the job, calling it a great opportunity for bonding and brainstorming up songs during their free time. Although they were still determining their mini-units (yet another side project they had taken up in order to broaden their profile and fame), they had decided to just go with the units that looked most likely from the current polls open to the public on their website. So Honoka, Kotori and Hanayo would be under an as-yet unnamed unit, Umi, Nozomi and Rin in another, and Eli, Maki and Nico in the last one.

Honoka's first accomplishment as mini-unit leader was to lead them to a crushing defeat at the scheming hands of the other two mini-unit leaders. In a way, it was probably the most expected result, given who the three leaders had been.

With a wry smile on her face, Eli slid the folder across the table to Honoka, who could only accept it moodily. "All the details to the job are inside. Honoka, Kotori, Hanayo, please do a good job for our sake next week."

And with that, their fates were sealed.

* * *

"Ehh? But then it'll just be Rin and Maki over the next week nya..."

Over at the end of the table near the window, the first-years were discussing their plans for the following week. Since three members would be missing, they had first considered meeting up in their new mini-units to discuss song ideas. But Nozomi had then apologetically announced that she would be busy over the week with work at the shrine due to the upcoming festival, so they had decided to simply call off all club activities entirely. Since they had been practising rather hard for the weeks before this, none of them were even worried about the performance on Saturday as they would have that morning to rehearse first.

Which of course, left a very bored catlike girl frowning at the idea of not having practice for the entire week to fill in her afternoons.

"I'll just take a break and relax with my music at home," Maki shrugged with a finger curling her hair. "It'll be a good time to refresh after the last few weeks, especially after helping everyone with their pairings singles."

Hanayo let out a soft appreciative smile. "Hehe, it's been hard on you, Maki-chan, helping to make so many songs. Thanks again."

"Well, it's not like I did a lot since I only put things together. Everyone came up with their base tune by themselves so it was a lot easier than me working on the songs from scratch."

"Waaaaait! If Maki-chan goes home then Rin will be all alone! Rin doesn't want to be alone nya!" Rin had her hands on the table in protest, her face scrunched up in indignation and unhappiness. Her childhood friend could only smile helplessly since she was locked in an even worse fate, but Maki merely continued twirling her hair in indifference.

"You can always come to the clubroom. I'm sure there'll be someone here at least."

"I don't wanna! It'll just be Rin ending up alone with Nico-chan and that's just creepy nya!"

A lithe pair of light-skinned hands shot out from behind the orange-haired girl, and a very irate club president began pinching Rin's cheeks. "Oi, I heard that! I'm gonna pinch you!.."

"You're already pinching Rinnn!" Her voice distorted by the weird shape her cheeks were being pulled in, Rin could feel tears coming to her eyes at the pain.

Deciding she had enough, Nico let go and sat back down. "I'll just be in the clubroom over the next week," she announced to no one in particular. And as expected, no one really took notice of what she said either. Except Kotori, who had her head tilted with a thoughtful expression, while Nozomi looked worriedly at her cards. Neither of them voiced their thoughts though, keeping their worries to themselves as they glanced around at the other members.

Back over with the first-years, Rin had finally recovered enough to stop rubbing at her sore cheeks. "Rin will go where Maki-chan goes!"

"I- what? I already told you I'll just be going home early now, didn't I?!"

"Then Rin will follow Maki-chan home nya! Rin will only go home when it's time for dinner~"

"I..." Realizing the futility of trying to fight the catlike girl who did whatever she felt like, Maki felt a slow and painful headache starting to throb at her temples. "Fine. But just for one day. And you're going home at six o'clock sharp."

Having achieved what she wanted from the start, Rin felt an ecstatic grin pull at her lips. Yet she couldn't resist one last parting shot. "Eeehh... So stingy. Maki-chan is such a troublesome person."

"... Who is the troublesome person here?!"

Faced with Maki's clear irritation and Rin cheekily shrugging everything off, Hanayo could only back away quietly and watch as the two started another argument, a drop of sweat that had nothing to do with the heat falling down from her forehead.

After all those years with her childhood friend, she certainly hoped Maki wouldn't end up killing Rin over the next week.

* * *

**Author's Note: So, our first pairing is MakiRin. Because Beat in Angel is one of my favourite songs, and the two do have some things going for them. ****And most importantly, because their seiyuus are forming a new special unit called "4to6". To be honest I had no idea how to write this pairing for the longest time, until I woke up to the news about 4to6 a few weeks back and the whole plotline just fell into place right after that. It was a godsend, really. So thanks for the story's premise, Rippi and Pile-sama orz.**

**Normally, Honoka's characteristic tarot card would be The Magician instead. But The Fool is just funnier.**

**It's the 7th of July over in Japan. Summer is starting to kick in gear, the _tsuyu_ (rainy) season is annoying the crap out of me, and it's Tanabata. Such summery feels, which is why I'm starting on this fic now. My Tanabata wish is for the Love Live! seiyuus to come down for AFASG this year.**

**叶え、みんなの夢！=D**


	2. V1C2: Maki's Lot In Life

**Chapter 2: Maki's Lot In Life**

Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock.

The clock was nowhere near that loud within the first-year classroom, but Maki felt as if she could feel every second pass by with the speed of a snail. No, the speed of a snail that had been dipped in a mixture of formaldehyde, molasses and instant glue, and then placed on a travellator moving _backwards_. The redhead was not a girl prone to cursing (her upbringing had been too refined for that), but her otherwise-extensive vocabulary seemed to be lacking the exact words for the discomfort she was feeling at the moment.

_Can this lesson just end already..._ Maki thought irritably to herself as she spun a pen about in her fingers. English had never been an interesting lesson to her. For one thing, the teacher had a soporific voice that seemed to excel in putting students to sleep. Perhaps she specialized in a form of sleep-learning? Well given the average English scores of the class during the first midterm, it didn't seem to be working.

Except for Maki, of course, since she had already covered the entire syllabus for this year when she was ten. Times like these made her grateful for the private tutoring she had as a child. Certainly, to do any learning under these conditions would've been a far greater struggle than sacrificing some play time.

But what was _really_ making her feel uncomfortable, was the way Rin kept turning around to glance at her as if to make sure she hadn't vanished into thin air. Given that she was three seats across and two seats behind her (which was pretty much half the classroom apart), it was making plenty of their classmates curious, resulting in even more inquisitive looks being thrown her way. And Maki had never, ever liked to be the centre of attention. The only bright side was that the teacher hadn't spotted all the commotion either, though Rin disrupting the class was hardly anything new. That girl was just too full of energy all the time.

Admittedly, Rin probably had the right idea, Maki sighed while she twirled a finger around her hair, examining the endings of her hair for any split-ends. Her original plan had been to sneak out of the first-year classroom as quietly as she could the very second class ended. And that... annoying cat had definitely read her mind somewhere.

Or maybe she was just that predictable. Whatever the case, that plan was out the door now. Maybe she should come up with some excuse instead?

Unfortunately for the redhead composer, the bell had rung before she came up with anything decent. And even before the teacher finished closing the door behind her on her way out, a warm weight had already landed upon Maki's back.

"Maki-chan!~"

Maki took a moment to sigh inwardly and snark at her fate, before shrugging the catlike girl off her shoulders. "Get off me, Rin."

"Rin is going to Maki-chan's house to play, right? Rin's excited! Tension's rising up nya!"

_And this is my lot in life. To be endlessly bothered by a friend with a broken tension meter._

"What are you, an elementary school kid? Just keep quiet already."

"Hehe, it's rare to see Rin-chan that excited." That was Hanayo, coming over to Maki's desk with her schoolbag already on her shoulder to join the conversation. "Ah, I better go meet up with Kotori-chan and Honoka-chan first before going to the mall... See you two tomorrow." The brunette left, though with nowhere near the same energy she had coming over. In fact her retreating back looked like the back of someone headed off to the gallows.

_At least I'm not the one with the worst fate around here._

"Let's go nya! Rin wants to see what Maki-chan's room is like!"

_On second thought, that last bit is definitely debatable._

* * *

The Nishikino Mansion towered above the two first-years, with sunlight reflecting off its windows and casting shadows of the grand architecture in sharp relief. Though it was only two stories tall with a massive attic on the third, the grandeur of the building lay in its sheer expanse and extravagant usage of space. With two smaller gates flanking a large one for cars, and a wide garden that managed to contain trees without feeling enclosed or cramped, the hefty price of land in this sector of town clearly was not an issue to the Nishikino family. What added to the towering effect was the sense of how immense each floor alone was. A normal apartment building could definitely have put in four whole stories where there were only three here.

Naturally, Rin was shell-shocked, having been unnaturally silent ever since she entered that particular street. It wasn't until they stopped in front of the gates that she broke her uncharacteristically quiet reverie.

"Rin feels like she's been here before..."

"What are you talking about? Only Hanayo's been here before, when she came to return my student handbook."

"That's right, with Kayo-chin nya! Rin was here with... her..." Her voice trailing off, the catlike girl shook her head vigorously before tilting it in confusion, the action sending her hair fluttering about. "Never mind, Rin must be imagining it nya!"

Not for the first time, Maki found herself noticing the way those orange strands fluttered in the air, unburdened by weight by virtue of their compact length. And yet they always fell back the same way without needing to be styled, perfectly framing the energetic figure that Rin was. The pixie haircut was something Rin alone could pull off, Maki was certain it would just look terrible on herself or some of the other Muse members.

Looking at Rin's face here outside the gate of her house, made her cheeks feel impossibly cold all of a sudden despite the hot summer sun beaming down upon them.

"Let's just go in already." Unsettled enough that her voice had lost its usual sharp edge, Maki decided to pay no heed to whatever it was that just happened and led the way into the house.

* * *

After Maki stepped through the doorway, Rin poked her head in curiously for a second before stepping into the normal-looking entranceway. Shoe cabinets of polished wood were built into the walls and a rack held rows upon rows of indoor slippers, a sign of a home that was used to entertaining guests. From a first glance it seemed pretty normal, until she spotted the exquisite landscape painting framed upon the wall just a further bit down the corridor. But there wasn't much else in the way of luxury that Rin had come to expect from the imposing building façade, except for the inherent roominess.

"I'm back," the redhead called out as she switched to indoor slippers, setting out a pair for her classmate as well.

"Welcome home," came the immediate reply. A tall, genteel woman stepped out from behind a door, and that was when Rin got her first look at what had to be Maki's mother. Donning a long, flowing burgundy dress and a cream-white long-sleeved coat over it, the very way she carried herself spoke of elegance, refinement and tradition, a sight that would not have looked out of place within an art exhibition even while wearing her home clothes. Rin felt almost cowed at the sight of something so antithetical to her own existence, at least until her own eyes rose to meet the woman's directly. A darker shade of purple than Maki's gorgeous amethyst eyes, they were eyes that had lost their youthful gleam over the years but clearly not their love for their family. It was the soft tenderness in those eyes that instantly endeared the catlike girl to the woman.

She wondered if Maki's eyes would someday look like that, too. Maybe once that tsundere redhead had a child...

That thought quickly soured her mood for some reason, so she shoved it firmly out of her head as she put on her best cheerful smile. "Sorry for intruding!~"

"Oh? Maki, you didn't tell me you were bringing someone over."

"It was a sudden decision, Mama. This is Rin, a classmate and another member of Muse."

"Sudden? I thought we agreed since- nyaa!" What else Rin had to say was quickly cut off by a finger jabbing sharply into her side, and a hand that grabbed hers while she was stunned. With a firm tug, the orange-haired girl found herself being led through the corridor and towards the stairs.

"A sudden decision," Maki repeated again smoothly. "We'll be in my room."

"I'll bring some tea up in a moment then." Another gentle smile, much unlike her daughter's. If it wasn't for the clear family resemblance in looks, Rin wouldn't have thought they were related.

Feeling the need to put up at least some bit of resistance, Rin tugged slightly at the hand on her arm. "But Rin wants to explore the rest of the- nyaaaah!"

Looks like Maki and her fingers weren't really in the mood to care what Rin wanted.

* * *

Once the two were finally settled in Maki's room (or as settled as they could be, considering Rin was currently bouncing around like a hyperactive toddler examining every item in the room), Maki let out a long suffering sigh, plopping herself down onto a comfortable leather chair by her desk. Having always been close to her mother, she understood what that last smile had been about, especially with the relief evident in those dark purple orbs. Ever since starting high school, the only person who had come over was Hanayo that one time. After that she hadn't invited anyone over.

_It's nice that Mama worries about me, but she doesn't have to do it that much... I can make friends perfectly fine!_

Even as the words crossed her mind, the composer could spot the contradiction in her own thoughts.

It hadn't been easy for her from the very beginning in elementary school. Having come from a rich family, constantly undergoing private tuition that sapped away her playtime, it was just near impossible for her to fit in with everyone else. She hadn't been actively ostracised or bullied at least, but it just seemed that no one ever seemed comfortable with getting too close to her. And of course, it certainly didn't help that she was forever the best in scores for every subject imaginable, even her talent in piano which had been nurtured from a young age by her mother. All her friends were distant at best, at worst they were the clingy sort that expected her to pick up the bill.

Getting rid of that last scheming bunch had been hell, and the resulting fallout didn't do anything for her reputation either. But that was fine. She had enough of trying to make friends.

So she could only put on the strongest personality she could muster: Independent, cold, and unbreakable.

Always top of the class. Always alone.

When she was graduating from middle school, she had exchanged contact details with the girls she worked with for her group project out of formality's sake. Not a single conversation had occurred since that day, and Maki didn't quite feel the need to change that either.

She had expected to spend her high school life the same way, though she had been ecstatic to realise at first that she would at least be able to use the piano in the music room from time to time. And given the small student population, no one else ever showed up to use it at the same time as her, which was a godsend. It was her last refuge from life and her constant studies.

It certainly wasn't also because the music blocked out all the noises and cheerful laughter from the clubs and students staying behind in school. She definitely didn't feel the urge to join them at all!

But then Honoka had showed up, and that insane girl had just _dragged_ her into something so much crazier, so much fun that she couldn't believe it some days. Back in middle school, there was no way she could have ever imagined this sort of life for herself. Putting in her best each and every day, turning her music into something so much greater with their performances, the sense of fulfilment from their lives, and most importantly the people she had met.

... Like that excitable cat who was literally bouncing on her bed to see how much weight it could take.

"Rin! Stop that at once!"

Her voice was still lacking its usual edge though. After all, the sight was somewhat amusing. Just like a cat, it was the strangest and most insignificant things that entertained the orange-haired girl the most.

"But Maki-chan's bed is so much softer than Rin's! Rin wants to sleep on a bed like this nya!" With that, the girl plopped herself onto the pillow without a care. "Good night~"

A nerve began twitching on Maki's forehead. "Wha- that's where I sleep! Get off it already!"

"Then Rin wants to sleep with Maki-chan!"

A simple sentence, uttered with nothing but the most innocent of thoughts. Rin even began waving her hands invitingly at her classmate while lying on her side.

Yet Maki couldn't help but feel heat rising to her cheeks. What made it a whole lot worse was that she was clearly the only one with such thoughts.

"I- no! That's enough Rin! Just get off now!"

"No way nya~"

Frustrated, Maki stomped her way over menacingly, without the slightest effect on the cheeky girl with her Cheshire Cat smile. Grabbing one of Rin's arms, she was surprised to find the orange-haired girl was stronger than she looked, and hence putting up more of a resistance than expected.

And that not having changed out of her school uniform and socks yet, she had close to zero grip on her smooth indoor slippers.

So the redhead lost her footing and fell forward, though at least it would be onto the bed. Unfortunately for her though, the very source of her unbalance was between her and said bed in the first place. It all happened so quickly that Maki had no idea what was even happening: one instant she was pulling on Rin's arm, and the next she was lying on something soft.

Something smelled good though. Was that the smell of yuzu? Maki had never liked eating tangerines and other citrus fruits, but was still partial to their scents. Unable to resist, she inhaled deeply, with fluttering hairs tickling her nostrils as she did so.

... She really didn't feel like moving. Since she was already on her bed, maybe she could just ignore everything else and go to sleep right this moment.

"Maki-chan?.."

Resisting the urge to sigh or growl in frustration, Maki raised herself upon her hands, glaring down at her classmate. With no idea how else to react, she defaulted to what she knew best.

"What the heck are you doing Rin?!"

It wasn't like she was _really_ angry though. And definitely not after seeing Rin's apologetic, almost-crying face. All she wanted was to sink back down to hug her classmate after looking at those teary eyes.

"Rin's sorry nya... Are you okay?"

_Even better than I was._ "I'm fine," the composer snapped back. But just as she opened her mouth once more to continue her not-really-angry tirade, there was a knock on the door which opened shortly after.

Maki froze on the spot as the two of them turned to the doorway, where her mother stood with a tray of tea. Her mind working overtime, she processed the entire scene in a single instant. Rin was lying on her bed, with eyes clearly about to overflow from tears. And Maki was hovering over her, with both hands trapping Rin's head in and even one knee between the other girl's legs.

"... Should I come back later?"

If nothing else, Maki really had to laud her mother on how stoically she had commented, still bearing the same smile she had earlier. Maki on the other hand had no such gifts, feeling a full-out blush explode with fury across her face even as she stuttered out a reply.

"This- this isn't what it looks like!"

Looks like she had a lot of explaining to do.

* * *

**Author's Note: So, some classic anime romantic comedy humour. For the record, socks and smooth indoor slippers (basically plastic, not the furry kind) are really a bad combination. I once nearly tumbled down an entire flight of stairs at a ryokan thanks to them, narrowly saved myself by clutching on to the railing.**

**Sorry for the slow update, but this will probably be the pace I'll adopt from now on: once a week. Unless my writing picks up speed which is unlikely thanks to real life commitments starting to pile up.**

**Also, only three reviews? You wound me, readers. =( I'm not going to hold the next chapter ransom or anything but please let me know what you all think! I understand MakiRin is clearly an unpopular ship but still... =X I'm actually quite worried about Maki going OOC in this fic orz.**


	3. V1C3: Bento Woes

**Chapter 3: Bento Woes**

Maki clutched her head in her hands in a rare sign of distress, rubbing away at the dull throbbing ache in her temples. It was only the second day of the week, and it had already taken a turn for the worse. And looking at how it was right now, it didn't look like it was about to get better.

Or could it? What was this strange feeling in her heart? Was she... nervous?

"Come on, Maki-chan, it's really important nya! Please~"

How was it that one girl alone could manage to wreak so much havoc within her mind?

* * *

Maki had greeted that morning in a foul mood, drowsy from lack of sleep and annoyed at the birds that refused to stop chirping despite how early it was. When she had rolled onto her side to blearily glance at her clock with an amethyst glare, it had informed her that it was still a good half hour before her alarm was due to go off. Maki had spent the remaining time futilely trying to return to sleep, desperately trying to regain a hold upon the warmth within her dreams.

Not that she would ever admit what she dreamed to herself, of course. It was bad enough that the issue had kept her up all night as it was.

So Maki had descended the stairs an hour and half afterwards once she had washed up, and entered the dining room to the sight of her breakfast sitting alongside her lunch box for the day... or rather, two lunch boxes wrapped in the same cloth. Furrowing her brow in confusion, she turned to her mother who was sitting across the table.

"Mama, this is mine right? Why are there two bentos?"

"Hmm? I had the chef make an extra one for your friend. Rin-chan, was it? She's a delightful girl, you should invite her over more often." With a sip of her coffee, her mother turned her attention back to reading the paper as if the issue was as simple as that.

_She- she's still totally misunderstanding what happened yesterday!_ "... But that doesn't mean we should go to the extent of making a bento for her!"

"The chef didn't find it troublesome at all, since it's all the same ingredients anyway. You know he dotes on you too, Maki, he was all too happy to make one for Rin-chan as well."

Maki felt herself quickly losing ground, unable to find the right words to express herself. "That's not the problem here!"

"... Hmm, I see. So that's how it is..."

"Mama..." A wave of relief sunk over Maki. At least the misunderstanding would be cleared now.

"You wanted to make it for her yourself, isn't it?"

"Noooo!"

* * *

And so she had ended up at lunch time with one extra bento than she should have. The trio of first-years were surprisingly alone on the rooftop, despite the cool winds and fluffy clouds that blocked out most of summer's dazzling rays and brought it to a comfortable level. It was a good day to bask outside, rare in the impending stifling heat waves and insane temperature levels that made up most of summer. A familiar shout of "Come back here Honoka!" echoing all the way from the courtyard below (which they ignored since it was business as usual) let them know they weren't the only ones with that idea.

As Hanayo opened up her own bento, rice balls as always, Maki mentally ran through a hundred scenarios and a thousand different lines on how to present her second bento. As expected, Rin who was sitting in the centre had brought her own lunch of sandwiches, which made Maki's extra bento all the more awkward.

Staring at the two bentos still wrapped in the napkin, the composer found herself freezing up with a complex look and a blush on her face. How on earth had she gotten herself stuck in this situation?!

"Hmm? Maki-chan isn't eating?" Hanayo's words were muffled through a full mouthful of rice, which she managed to swallow without any difficulty.

"I... "

"Maki-chan's bento looks bigger than usual nya! Aren't you hungry just looking at it?"

Maki's stomach chose that very instant to punctuate Rin's statement with a growl, leaving the redhead (and now red-faced) no choice but to go ahead with it lest she be stuck without food the entire lunch. Gritting her teeth, Maki unwrapped the napkin and picked up the upper bento, shoving it in Rin's direction.

"Eh? Maki-chan?"

"Here you go just take it already the chef made too much and Mama asked me to bring the extras to school to share with you since you came over yesterday and it definitely wasn't because they made a bento specially for you so don't get the wrong idea okay?"

Maki's face was now a deep shade of crimson, both from embarrassment and lack of oxygen. Everything had come out in a whole rush of words so fast even she had no idea what she herself said. Frankly speaking if not for her singing practice, she doubted she could've said that much in one go.

At least Rin seemed to have gotten the message, her eyes lighting up as she took hold of the bento and placed it on top of her lap, a smile of pure innocent joy spreading across her face.

"Free food nya! Let's all share it together!"

Okay, so maybe she didn't get all of it, but at least the important part got through if she didn't think it was personal enough that she had to eat it by herself.

Turning her attention back to her own bento, Maki took off the cover partially only to slam it back down before the other two could see what was inside. _What- what did I just see?_ Opening the lid once more experimentally, she confirmed her worst fears before sealing it as tight as she could. It was over. There went her lunch, forever lost with no hope of being eaten. Not in front of the other two anyway.

It was almost pretty standard fare from her chef. Hot dogs cut in the shape of an octopus, sweet egg rolls, potato croquettes and fresh lettuce... Just because their family was decently well off didn't mean they ate extravagantly for normal meals. No, what was wrong with it was the fried rice that had replaced the normal white rice she was used to seeing.

Or specifically, the large heart drawn upon it in ketchup.

Her face paling as white as her song sheets, the composer turned to Rin who was still happily reaching out to open the gifted bento, humming some upbeat tune to herself. With the speed of lightning brought about by desperation, Maki's hand snatched the bento away before her classmate could do so.

"Eh?.. What was that for, Maki-chan?"

"I... changed my mind. I'm quite hungry so I think I'll eat it myself. Afterwards."

_Way to go, Nishikino Maki. Totally top-notch acting there. I'm sure your best friends would buy it without hesitation,_ the sarcastic part of her mind snarked without relent despite the gravity of the situation.

"If you're hungry you should eat it now nya! After this you won't get to eat till after school! And so that if you can't finish it Rin will help you!"

"No, I..." Maki took a deep breath to calm herself, her mind racing through every plausible excuse before deciding on the most well-reasoned one. She would have to deliver this with the utmost conviction. "I'm sorry Rin, I just realised the chef mixed fish into the rice. I know you hate fish the most so it'll probably smell pretty bad to you, I just didn't want to put you off your appetite."

The orange-haired girl seemed taken aback by the explanation, momentarily speechless. "Rin uhh... Thanks Maki-chan," she muttered awkwardly while scratching her head. "But you don't have to force yourself, especially since it's your lunch. Rin doesn't want Maki-chan to go hungry either."

"It's okay. I'll just... find somewhere to dispose of this." Rising up to leave, Maki froze when a hand shot out to grab her arm.

"No! Maki-chan should eat with us! Rin doesn't care if it's fish or anything!"

"I can't possibly- let me go!"

"Rin wants Maki-chan to stay nya!"

"Just let me go already!"

Surprisingly, the one who put an end to the argument was Hanayo. Rising up from her seat with a strangely annoyed face, she snatched one of the bentos from Maki and popped it open while holding the lid carefully to block it from Rin's sight. Given that her childhood friend was still sitting down anyway, it wasn't a particularly hard task.

Maki gulped as Hanayo stared at the bento between them for a few long seconds, expression unreadable. This was it. Her life was over. Hanayo was going to get the wrong idea and Rin would most probably be way too confused and there would be a whole slew of awkward questions and their friendship would never be the same again. Not for the first time that day, Maki wished she could just dig a hole into the ground and bury herself within it.

After a while more of nerve-wrecking tension, Hanayo finally moved to retrieve a pair of chopsticks while carefully keeping the bento's contents out of Rin's sight. With much vigorous stirring of the rice, she lifted a clump up and smelled it before placing it in her mouth.

"I don't think there's fish inside, Maki-chan. Were you mistaken? Here you go, Rin-chan."

"Thank you nya!" Accepting the proffered bento, Rin stared at it in delight. "It looks delicious! Thank you too Maki-chan!"

"Uhh... it's nothing." Maki found herself too stunned by the sudden turn of events to respond properly.

"Let me check that other bento too, Maki-chan," the brunette offered as she took the second bento and mixed the rice well without a single comment before tasting it. "Nope, this one tastes and smells fine too."

"I... Thanks, Hanayo." In the end, her stubborn personality couldn't come up with the right words to thank her classmate for her life-saving actions.

"It's nothing. Don't go stressing out and thinking you have to do everything by yourself, Maki-chan. You might just make mistakes like just now."

The redhead paused uncertainly, not sure what to make of her classmate's words. "I'm... not sure what you mean, Hanayo."

"You're not alone, Maki-chan! If there's something you need help with, you can always count on me!"

"And Rin too nya! Though Rin doesn't really understand what we're talking about..."

_Is Hanayo... trying to support me? But wait, that means she's got the wrong idea too!_

Despite that though, it still felt comforting. Somehow knowing that Hanayo would support her if she liked Rin (hypothetically, of course) in that way, and the obvious implication that Hanayo did not think of Rin as a potential romantic partner at all, lifted quite a weight off Maki's heart. A weight she didn't even know had been there, and still couldn't explain to herself anyway.

"Thanks..."

"Think nothing of it! We're friends, you know?"

Maki let out a short chuckle, finding the words oddly familiar enough that her tsundere side didn't leap up at the closeness. "I guess we are."

...

"Hanayo."

"Hmm?"

"Can I have my bento back?"

Hanayo finally looked down at the bento she had been digging into with gusto, only to realise that was not her lunch. With a sheepish grin, she handed it back to its rightful owner.

When Maki finally settled down to lunch again, most of her rice had already been devoured by the well-intentioned yet absent-minded brunette, the spare bento had been shortly polished off by Rin with cries of "Delicious!", and only a few of Rin's remaining sandwiches had saved her from starving.

So much for having brought too much food.

* * *

And back to the present, it was currently in the afternoon after lessons had ended. Hanayo had left hastily with only a wave at her best friends, and a secret gesture of a fist pump towards Maki behind Rin's back, telling her to fight hard. Which of course resulted in the redhead introducing her palm to her face.

Unsurprisingly, Rin had bounced her way over to Maki's table with the one demand she had been expecting with absolutely certainty. Ever since yesterday, Maki knew the possibility of it happening were even more sure than the fact that Hanayo would be having rice balls again for lunch, or that the sun would rise from the east.

"Maki-chan, let's play at your house again today nya!"

"I must refuse." Her reply was smooth, formal, and well-practised. After all, she's had plenty of opportunities to use that phrase ever since she was dragged into this whole school idol thing.

"Ehh?! That's boring nya! Rin wants to play with Maki-chan!"

"I refuse. Go home, Rin. I'm going home too."

"Rin doesn't want to! Rin... Rin has something important to discuss with Maki-chan!"

The redhead was taken aback by Rin's sudden change of tone to something sombre and serious. "Something... important?.."

"Mm! Something very important to Rin and Maki-chan. But Rin can't discuss it here in school..."

"I... you... what do you mean something important to us..." Oh dear. Maki was starting to feel her brain overheat again, thoughts endlessly colliding and mixing into one another till they made absolutely no sense.

"Rin doesn't want to talk about it in school! Come on, Maki-chan, it's really important nya! Please~" Crouching by the side of Maki's table, the catlike girl had her hands together in a pleading gesture.

"There- there's any number of other places we can talk about it in that case! Like the park or a cafe or..."

"It should be somewhere private nya! That's why Rin wants to go to Maki-chan's house!"

"Somewhere... private..." That was the final blow. Maki had definitely lost all capability of coherent thought.

"Come on, Maki-chan, let's go already!"

Head still in a whirl and affected by the cat's beseeching eyes and cute upturned mouth, there was only one possible conclusion to this scenario.

* * *

**Author's Note: Thanks for all the reviews, readers! I'm really glad you all still like where I'm going with this story. I've actually taken some liberties with Maki's character in making her a little more snarky and sarcastic in her mind. Somehow to me, it feels like she would be intelligent and quick-thinking enough to possess those traits, yet be unable to express them because of how socially-awkward she is. Which leaves her alone in her mind beating herself up half the time. Actually now that I think about it, that seems really kind of sad. ;_;**

**Meanwhile, Rin still being adorable Rin and getting her way just by being Rin. I don't have any other adjectives. Just too much Rin for Maki to handle.**

**Last few days before the release of the 4th live BDs and the NicoMaki duet. *hype hype hype***


	4. V1C4: Queen Cat of the Impossibly Dense

**Chapter 4: Queen Cat of the Impossibly Dense**

The atmosphere on the walk home had been unsurprisingly strained. Maki's nerves felt like a rubber-band stretched to the point of almost snapping, yet there was nothing she could do to alleviate it. She didn't dare to ask again what Rin had meant, nor did the source of her woes bother to explain, simply skipping along without a care in the world.

All this time, it never even occurred to her if Rin had been lying just to wriggle her way back into Maki's room. But in a way, that was also normal: the Rin that Maki knew was absolutely not capable of such subterfuge. The catlike girl always went with what she felt was most fun, and her emotions could be read like an open book. Even if Maki had only known her for a couple of months since entering Otonokizaka Academy, she felt like it had been far, _far_ longer with just how well she knew Rin. It was a strange and mysterious feeling that she simply couldn't place, even if it put her at ease around the energetic girl.

How each of her movements accentuated her slim and agile figure, how each tilt of her head sent her hair flying in a glorious disarray that repaired itself with almost-mechanical precision, and those gentle, nimble hands that pounced on Maki whenever her guard was down, often followed up by a warm body pressing against hers that sent her own temperature shooting up. Maki knew it all, and could even imagine it with her eyes closed.

But what Maki liked- no, found _most agreeable_ about Rin, was probably her happy-go-lucky personality. The way she would always choose what was most fun to do, and more importantly, how it always ended up bothering Maki.

That Rin's idea of fun was being with the redhead despite her cold, frigid personality and constant attempts to distance others, was something that Maki found impossibly heart-warming, melting the icy façade she had been putting up all this while. And over the weeks and months with Rin's consistent effort in chipping away at (or more like bashing through) her mask of ice, she had slowly gotten to know her better along with the other members of Muse. Despite everything else that was going on, Rin had been the first person to really become Maki's friend.

Even if it was Honoka, and then Hanayo who had given her the first impetus to becoming a school idol, it was still Rin that she felt an enigmatic attraction to.

A girl impossibly complex in her simplicity, inexplicably mysterious in her straightforwardness.

_Just what is it about me that Rin finds fun enough to keep bothering me?..._

Maki felt that if she could just derive the answer to this question, all her problems would be solved.

* * *

This time once they were within Maki's bedroom, the redhead took pre-emptive action by seating herself on the bed, leaving Rin nowhere to sit but on her desk chair. At least that would limit the number of "accidents" that could happen within the room.

"S- so... what was it that y- you wanted to talk about?"

Ah, her voice was cracking up with a blush yet again... how hopeless. It had taken all she had to get them past her mother downstairs (whose smile had definitely been far too wide to be normal); now that they were safely in her room she was starting to fall apart at the false sense of security.

False only because the one thing that was most dangerous to her heart in this entire world, was now enclosed with her in what felt like an incredibly tiny space all of a sudden. How on earth had everything changed so insanely fast from just yesterday?

"Ah, that's right nya... about that..." the catlike girl began fidgeting, pulling her feet up and curling up upon Maki's chair in a criminally-cute (though somewhat unfeminine) posture. Her skirt hiked up her legs slightly, causing the redhead to gulp and avert her eyes.

Finding herself too short of breath to speak, Maki could only wave for the other girl to continue.

"Well, it's really selfish of Rin but it's something Rin really really wants..."

_Something Rin really wants?_

"But it may trouble Maki-chan. So Rin didn't want to say it at all at first. "

_Something that may trouble me... Does she mean..._

"Rin was also worried what the rest of Muse might think..."

Maki could barely hear her classmate's words through her heartbeat pounding in her ears.

"But Rin decided, Rin wants to do it with Maki-chan after all!" Leaping up from her seat, the orange-haired girl regained her confident posture with a fist punch.

Her legs wobbly, Maki couldn't even find the strength to stand. Her vision was closing in on her, all she could see was Rin even as she fought to calm herself.

"Rin wants to sing a special duet song with Maki-chan nya!"

Maki fell forward and collapsed face-first on the floor.

"Eeeh? Is Maki-chan alright? Was it something Rin said?"

_Right. I forgot who I'm dealing with. Queen cat of the impossibly dense where emotions are concerned._

Not like Maki had ever dropped any hints on her own growing attraction to Rin either, but then again she had yet to admit it to herself in the first place.

"I'm fine," Maki groused as she picked herself up, face livid from the feeling of having been taken on an emotional roller-coaster for nothing. Never mind the fact that it was her own unreasonable expectations that had brought her along for the ride. "You said you wanted to do a duet song?"

"Mm! Rin did one with Honoka-chan, and it was fun nya! But Rin really wanted to make one with Maki-chan as well!"

Her mood quickly souring over her own misconceptions, Maki found herself unable to gather any enthusiasm at the idea. "Is there even any meaning to that? We already published all our pairings singles so there would be no use for the song."

"How can you say that Maki-chan! A song is a song nya!"

"It's a song we can't release unless everyone else gets one too! Making thirteen songs for that last batch was already bad enough, you want me to make another set?!" Once the words were out she immediately clamped her mouth shut, but Rin didn't seem to notice it. Though Maki would rather die than admit it willingly, making those thirteen songs had indeed been a hellish task even with everyone's help. It was the first time in her life she had to apply concealer to hide all the signs of the late nights she spent working with the music program.

"Since it's Maki-chan, you definitely can do it nya!"

"That doesn't mean I want to!"

"Ehehe. But actually Rin didn't intend to ask Maki-chan to make songs for everyone... that's why Rin insisted on discussing it here. Rin just wants to sing a song with Maki-chan. It doesn't have to be good or published or even shown to the rest."

"What are you saying? I don't get you at all."

"What are you saying? I don't get you at all," Rin mocked back in the same tone of voice with an added finger twirling her own hair. Despite her face that was trying her best to imitate Maki's cold and distant expression though, her eyes betrayed a tinge of mischief.

"I- Stop imitating me, Rin!"

"I refuse."

_Well, two can play at that game._ "Then about making that song, I refuse as well."

"That means if Rin stops imitating Maki-chan, Maki-chan will make the song nya! Deal!"

"... What? That wasn't what I meant!" Yet again the redhead had been thrown for a loop. How on earth did Rin's brain even work, to jump about that fast?

"Too bad! Maki-chan already agreed to it!"

Gritting her teeth, Maki folded her arms and tossed her head. "No means no, Rin. I won't do it. Not... not without a good reason." If she had to be honest with herself, it wasn't like the idea of singing a duet with Rin was that off-putting...

Maybe she was even looking forward to it a bit. But she couldn't just simply back down after saying all that.

...

"Rin?" Maki turned back to look at her classmate after the conspicuous lack of a response. To her surprise, Rin was sitting down on the chair calmly, a glassy look in her eyes as she stared at an empty corner of the room.

Another long pause. The redhead was about to query Rin once more when her reply finally emerged.

"Just that it's fun, isn't enough for a good reason?.."

It wasn't a sad reply, but a contemplative one. A self-questioning tone that spoke of uncertainty on the speaker's mind, after having been confronted with a question it had never even thought to consider before.

Maki was suddenly aware that Rin was putting in quite a large effort to go beyond her usual simple classification of "fun" and "not fun" things. She had asked a serious question, and instead of brushing it off, the catlike girl was doing her best to give a serious answer.

"Rin wants to make something with Maki-chan. Something that belongs to us and us alone."

Maki's breath caught. She had never heard Rin speak that slowly nor with that much conviction before, and admittedly it was an incredibly attractive change from her usual personality. She found her own gaze meeting the catlike girl's, trapped in those gentle yet firm topaz orbs. Once past all the teasing and cheekiness, there had been a resolute steel driving her intentions after all. Gentle and pliable enough to not discomfort Maki, but unwavering in will.

The way Rin was now, she actually looked... _cool._ Not cool in the typical flippant way people tended to use it, but actually drop-dead stunningly cool enough to blow all conscious thought and objections out of her own mind. Whatever it was Rin believed in enough to look like that, Maki had absolutely no problem with putting her faith in it as well.

A tingle ran down her spine as sirens began ringing in her head. The atmosphere here was definitely getting too dangerous. Yet Maki ignored them, too far gone to resist pushing deeper.

"And why... is that so, Rin?"

...

"I don't know nya!"

Having a firm grip on her bed this time and not falling face-first, Maki settled for introducing her palm to her face loudly instead. All the tension melted away in an instant, with Rin back to her usual upbeat self and impish eyes.

_Well, I expected as much. It's alright though. Knowing Rin, it's not like she's lying but she really doesn't want to look that deeply. What she said was already enough for me._

_After just now, I... I should be honest with myself as well. It doesn't mean I have to confess to her right away, but it's something I should work towards someday. But most importantly I won't run away from my own feelings anymore._

"Fine. I'll make you your song."

"That's wrong, Maki-chan!"

A slight pause, in which Maki realised what Rin's next words were even before they were uttered, bringing a reluctant smile to her face.

"It's our song nya!"

* * *

**Author's Note: And Maki faces herself. *cues battle theme* Uhh, I mean her own feelings. Can you imagine kakkoii Rin-chan? It sends a shiver down my spine too. I always liked my first-years.**

**Was looping Zurui yo Magnetic today (NicoMaki feels putting me off this fic ohnoes) for most of the week, as well as watching the 4th Live. Anemone heart, my lonely heart~ This has been an epic week for LLivers. I hope you all are enjoying all the releases too.**


	5. V1C5: Angel VS Cat

**Chapter 5: Angel VS Cat  
**

"So? What kind of song did you have in mind?" Maki asked while she trawled through her inspiration for ideas. Fragments of a song began assembling in her mind, reminiscent of the tune she had overheard Rin humming over lunch. It had been rather catchy...

"Something fast nya! And one where we often take turns to sing! Rin thinks that sort of alternating song would be interesting!"

"Hmm... Rin, that song you were humming over lunch wasn't from any existing song right?"

"Rin was humming a song?.." A scratch at her head, and a perplexed look. "Rin doesn't remember nya!"

"It was something like this..." Maki began humming the tune to the best of her ability, struggling to recall the poppy, upbeat notes from earlier. Though it hadn't been really fast, the tune had an impact that she felt would make for a good chorus.

When she finished humming the short section she could recall, she turned to Rin with an expectant look, only to be met with a rather lost expression.

"Sorry Maki-chan, could you... hum that again?"

And so the redhead complied, under her classmate's intense gaze that was making her feel a little uncomfortable.

"... So?"

"Rin doesn't know nya! Rin just came up with it on the spot! It does sound familiar though... but not from any song that Rin knows."

"Mm..." Maki hummed to herself absent-mindedly as she stood up, relocating to her desk where her laptop was and shooing Rin away in the process. This was surprisingly easier than all her previous songs, she could already get a good feel of how the song should be with how Rin wanted it. So confident she was in her budding melody that she didn't even need to test it out on her piano, booting up her usual music program to twiddle with the instruments. "Keyboard... synthesizer... and a heavy bass beat..." The redhead was already so lost in her work that she was alternating between muttering to herself and humming the song she was making.

"... angel..." came the murmur from the other side of the room, startling the composer who had almost forgotten she wasn't alone.

"Hmm? Did you say something Rin?"

"No, nothing... just thinking about the song..."

Perturbed by the usually-exuberant girl's unnatural quietness, Maki turned around to find Rin staring at her dresser, where there was a framed picture of her with her parents during one of her early piano recitals. Her mother had picked out a white, flowing dress for her that day, and it was a fond memory from her childhood playing against other pianists of much older ages and higher calibres. Though it hadn't been as wonderful as her first recital, that feeling of being challenged and wanting to grow as a musician was something that had sprouted that day.

The redhead snapped back from her reverie just in time to spot her classmate picking up a thick, leather-bound photo album that had been placed just next to the photo frame. _Oh god, I forgot to keep that away after Mama was looking at it..._

Maki's blood froze over. Time slowed as Rin's free hand slowly descended upon the album to open up its cover.

"Waaaaaait!"

For a moment there was silence, as amethyst and topaz eyes clashed. Maki could feel her skin begin to tingle, and all her hairs began standing up on their ends as adrenaline surged through her veins. As for Rin, she had no idea what was going on, but could feel the tension in the room rising.

With eyes narrowed and every muscle tensed and ready to pounce, the two first-years prepared for battle.

* * *

The fight is about to begin. The prize? Maki's childhood photo album, and possibly the right to embarrass her for the rest of her life.

In the left corner, armed with her catlike tendencies and impossibly high agility stat, is **Hoshizora Rin**, the aspiring athlete and school idol with top-notch coordination and flexibility.

And over in the right corner, possessing only her tsundere personality and the advantage of being literally on home-ground, is **Nishikino Maki**, genius composer and pianist.

**BATTLE START-O!**

*dice rolls*

Maki gains initiative! She ponders shortly on the best move before defaulting to basics. Maki uses **Snatch**! The album of humiliating childhood photos is in her possession!

"Wha- give that back nya!" Rin uses **Pounce**! Maki counters with a dodge around the chair. Rin misses!

"What do you mean give that back, this is mine! And you're not seeing it!" Maki retreats to her bed. Her Defence increases!

Rin uses **Pounce** again! Maki counters with **Pillow Shield**! Rin takes soft collision damage!

Maki uses **Snarl**! It's not very effective...

Rin uses **Grab**! Maki refuses to let go! The two are now locked in a tug-of-war!

"Let go, Rin! I'm not letting you look at this!"

"Then Rin wants to see it all the moreee!"

Rin suddenly lets go and uses **Hiss**! It's super effective! Maki is stunned on the ground!

Rin grabs the photo album and retreats to the other end of the room! Victory is hers!

Maki: Mission Failed.

* * *

Five minutes later, Maki had completely given up on regaining possession of her photo album, and was desperately working away on the song in the hopes of drowning out the cooing sounds coming from her bed where Rin was sitting.

"That pose is adorable nya! Ah, Rin has also been to this museum before!"

She was never going to live this one down. Childhood photo albums were one of the few things that could be a complete bane to one's pride and social life, and by the mischiefs of fate, hers had just happened to be lying around on a day Rin was coming over.

"Maki-chan, you were so cute back then! Totally unlike how you are now nya!"

A nerve twitched in the redhead's forehead as she heard something she couldn't ignore like everything else she had heard so far. "What do you mean by that?! Are you trying to pick a fight, Rin?!"

"But it's true! Small Maki-chan is definitely cuter! Can Maki-chan go back to being small again?"

"I can't- as if that was even possible! Stop being silly, Rin!"

"You could in a dream or something! But oh well, Rin likes Maki-chan the way she is now too so it's fine."

Maki turned back to her laptop to hide her burning face, struggling to recover from the fast tempo her heart was beating out at that moment. "... Do you even think before you say these things?"

"Hmm? What do you mean, Maki-chan?"

"... Never mind!" Before she had realised it, Maki had already completed the base melody of the entire song. All that was left were the accentuating instruments, though that would be the bulk of the work.

"Hmm this library, Rin and Kayo-chin used to visit it all the time..."

Maki's eyebrow twitched again.

"Ah, this book that Maki-chan was holding was Kayo-chin's favourite back then nya!"

Should she? It seemed as good a time as any. "... Ne, Rin. Can you tell me about... you and Hanayo?"

"Hmm? We're childhood friends nya! Ever since we met in elementary school we've always been together. But Maki-chan already knew that, right?.. So what else does Maki-chan want to know?"

"Ah no, I was just curious, that's all. You two just always seemed very close so I was wondering..." There was a sudden urge to simply turn away and drop the topic, but even as she started blushing, Maki just couldn't force the words out. "... Rin and Hanayo... as in... "

"...?" Rin had nothing but a look of confusion on her tilted head. One could almost see the question marks popping out over her befuddled face.

"Mou! What do you think of Hanayo, Rin?!"

"Kayo-chin? We're best friends?.."

"That's..." Maki took a deep breath, afraid to hear the answer. "That's it, right? Best friends?"

"Hmm... Kayo-chin has always been there for Rin. Kayo-chin would probably say something different, that it was Rin who was supporting her, but it's actually the other way round. If it wasn't for Kayo-chin, Rin wouldn't have been able to try so many fun things either. It's only because Kayo-chin is always there that Rin can be brave enough to try new things nya! That's why Kayo-chin will always be Rin's best friend!"

Maki felt yet another mysterious weight lifted off her chest, even more relieving than earlier during lunch. It was almost enough to make her feel dizzy and light-headed, now that the issues that had been quietly clouding her mind were resolved.

"... But Rin doesn't understand why Maki-chan is asking this nya!"

"Because..." The redhead found herself at a loss for words, her sudden forwardness fleeing her in that moment. All her extensive vocabulary and conversational skills honed from years of entertaining her parents' guests were useless under the questioning gaze of her crush. Excuses, lies and topic-changers, none of them came to mind as she stared back blankly at Rin.

Rin's mouth curled up teasingly, much to Maki's apprehension. "Ah! Rin gets it now nya!"

"You... you do?.." Maki could feel her heart skip a beat.

"Maki-chan is afraid nya!"

"..."

"Rin's correct, right?"

"I..."_ How am I even supposed to reply?!_

"It's okay, Maki-chan! We won't leave you alone, we can all be best friends together nya!"

This time round, Maki could definitely feel a blood vessel burst somewhere, alongside her involuntary lunge forward to strangle that... horribly dense, impossibly misleading catty girl.

"Nyaaa! Why are you chasing Rin arouuuund!" In the room that was rather uncluttered, all the orange-haired girl could do was dodge around the desk chair to avoid Maki's swiping hands that actually seemed rather intent on getting a good hold of Rin and shaking her about.

"Stop right there Rin! I had enough of this already!"

"But Rin didn't do anything wrong!"

"I don't care anymore!" Unknowingly, Maki had dropped her usual restrained façade and was honestly trying her best to catch Rin, who was just that much more agile.

"Time to run away nya!" With a tug on the door, Rin dashed out into the corridor without a care.

"Stop this instant! Riiiiiiiiiin!"

* * *

After ten minutes and a series of mishaps involving the kitchen, the library and the garden shed, the two first-years lay on the grass within the garden, panting heavily. It hadn't been an easy task for Maki to catch up to Rin; the faster girl even had time to don her outdoor shoes before dashing out into the garden. The only reason why Rin had even stopped running in the first place was the fact that there had been a misplaced garden rake lying on the grass. And she had stepped onto it head-on with the expected consequences of it flying up to smack her squarely in the face.

_... How on earth does Rin even have that much energy after a full day of school..._ Maki thought to herself as she looked up at the sky that was slowly turning orange. It was approaching evening, and probably almost time for her classmate to go home. Except that could wait until after she caught her breath.

"That was fun nya!" The orange-haired girl exploded from beside her, while rubbing at the sore spot on her forehead. "Rin finally got to explore Maki-chan's home! And it's even more fun than Rin thought it was!"

Maki didn't deign to respond to her classmate, merely soaking in the late afternoon atmosphere. The wind was much cooler now, carrying the smell of incoming rain and humidity in the air. But the sky still remained bright and wide as ever, almost enough that she felt like she was about to fall into it. There was a contented smile on her face, soaking in the feeling of the ground beneath her and the scents of wood and grass and faintly, ever so faintly, a hint of yuzu in the air.

It had been an enjoyable afternoon. No matter how aggravating Rin was, Maki doubted she could've loosened up that easily around anyone else. Only Rin could break through her walls and so easily help her to have real fun.

"Ne, Maki-chan. It's getting late."

And at least today she got another answer she had been writhing about in her own mind pondering over. If Rin didn't think of Hanayo that way, that meant she had a chance. "I know, Rin. I guess it's time for you to-"

"So Rin can just stay over for dinner right? Thanks Maki-chan!" And with that the catlike girl was up and off again, dashing back towards the door into the house.

For a brief moment, Maki just stared blankly at the quickly-dissipating dust trail left behind by the ever-spontaneous Rin.

"... Absolutely not! Stop right there! Riiiiiin!"

* * *

**Author's Note: Some things don't translate well. The phrasing I had in mind for Rin's "... angel..." was "_tenshi da_...". But "it's an angel..." didn't seem quite right either.**

**The middle fight portion, was written in homage of one of my favourite fics, The Fools' Tournament, which in turn was using it as a reference to Little Busters!. Both of those are good things.**

**And now Maki is all "CHANCE!" while Rin is also "CHANCE!" but in very different ways since Rin is only pouncing on Maki's every weakness for the fun of it.**

**Wanted to say thanks to everyone who's reviewed so far. It's really meant a lot to me because the amount I've gotten is saddening despite how much work I put into this. If you could tell me what I'm doing wrong, I'll be happy to listen. I won't discontinue it because I'll finish this volume or die trying (since as a reader I hate the feeling of a fic being left hanging), but future updates _will _be delayed. Sorry. I just really don't feel that into it anymore, and real life has caught up at last.**

**But really, special thanks to "fried chicken" who reviewed without an account so I can't PM you back. Thanks for your work of art turning that Maki-Rin scene into manga form, I was really, really touched by it (it seriously made me cry for a bit). I never thought my works could affect anyone to that extent that they would make something based on it so... yeah. **

**Thanks again for everyone's support.  
**


	6. V1C6: Rin And The Cold

**Chapter 6: Rin And The Cold**

Rin had never liked the rain.

It was wet, it was annoying, it meant she had to carry an umbrella which greatly limited her movement, it made her feet feel damp, it made running dangerous, it made shops close early, it resulted in PE lessons being held indoors which wasn't as fun, it made lessons even more monotonous than ever, it made them have to eat lunch within the classroom instead of the sunny rooftop or the courtyard... the list went on and on.

Most of all, it was _boring_. To hear nothing but the constant pitter-patter of raindrops hitting the ground and windowpanes all day long might have been relaxing for some, but definitely _not_ for the energetic girl.

Her dislike for the rain had started back when she was a kid, when she hadn't been allowed out to play whenever the skies started to pour. To the young, energetic ball of energy that she had been, it had always been almost a death sentence, resulting in her driving her parents up the wall with all the other antics she got up to just to entertain herself. Though such curfews no longer existed for her, there were still a thousand and one other reasons to maintain her long-standing grudge with the rain.

The orange-haired girl let out a helpless sigh as she slumped over her classroom table, waiting for the next teacher to arrive. Classic Literature was next. How fitting, a boring class for a boring day like this.

It seemed like she would have to find some ways to make this boring day more interesting after all.

* * *

"Maki-chan Maki-chan Maki-chaaaaaan!~" A good way to start every afternoon for Rin was her favourite activity: glomping onto the redhead tsundere.

"Wh-what is it, Rin?" came the annoyed reply, followed by an awkward shrug trying to shake her off. "Get off me!"

Crouching by the side of Maki's table, Rin peered up at her classmate, looking much like a cat begging for scraps. "Maki-chan, are you done with the music yet?"

"... How impatient can you possibly get? It hasn't even been a whole day since you asked me to make it."

"But it's Maki-chan nya! If it's you, you definitely could do it!"

"It certainly might have been possible if _someone_ didn't just invite herself over for dinner out of the blue."

"Eeeh? But Rin still left a bit after 7pm! That's plenty of time nya!"

"I had to spend a whole hour after that dealing with Mama asking- but that's not the point, Rin! We had an agreement! You weren't supposed to stay later than 6pm!"

Rin scratched her head in confusion, wondering just what Maki would have had to discuss so intensely with her mother. "Rin thought that only applied to the first day nya! So it's fine for Rin to stay however long she wants for every other day afterwards!"

"No! It was only Tuesday and you already broke the whole 4to6 theme! I'm telling you, Rin, you can't stay later than 6pm at my place from now on!"

"Rin doesn't understand what Maki-chan is saying nya! But don't yell so much, Maki-chan, Rin knows you enjoy having Rin around~"

"I- I don't!" The redhead was already starting to flush again, her cheeks betraying her emotions. Taking advantage of the moment, Rin pounced on her once again, rubbing their cheeks together.

"Hehe, Maki-chan is blushing and being all deredere nya!"

"... Just stop it already!"

* * *

"So is the song already done after all?" Rin asked with her head tilted, while walking out of the classroom together with Maki for the third time that week.

"I've got the base tune of the song finalized but not all the accentuating instruments."

"Eeh? Rin doesn't quite understand..."

"Well, it's done enough to work with for lyrics, but it's not really done yet."

"So it's done but not done?" With not much interest in the nitty-gritty bits of music, Rin had never quite comprehended the true depths of Maki's work.

"... More or less. If that's how you want to think of it."

"Rin still doesn't understand... Oh! Rin gets it, it's just like that cat thing nya! Sho- scolding cat!"

"... You mean Schrödinger's cat, don't you?"

"That's it nya! Maki-chan is so smart~ That's right, the song is both done and not done at the same time!"

"Rin, you don't really understand what Schrödinger's cat means, don't you?" Descending the stairs to the building entrance, Maki's question was asked flatly, with a clear implication there was only one expected answer.

Caught out at not really understanding what she had mentioned despite it involving cats, the catlike girl could only grin cheekily. "Ehehe... not really?"

Maki sighed and face-palmed, before speaking up again. "It's a thought experiment where a cat is placed in a box with a radioactive device coupled to a death trap. The box is opened up after one hour where there's a fifty percent chance the trap had already been triggered by the device, and a fifty percent chance where it hadn't. But the key concept is that before the box is opened and the state of the cat observed, the cat is in a state where it is both alive and dead at the same time." She paused for a while, but hearing no questions, carried on with her explanation. "Schrödinger actually first came up with it as a paradox to point out how ridiculous quantum physics was when applied to-"

"That's horrible nya!" Rin had her eyes widened in horror as she backed against the wall within the stairwell. "Why would anyone ever do that to a cat?!"

"Like I said, it's just a thought experiment! Schrödinger didn't actually do that to his cat!"

"But he could've chosen just about anything else from mice to insects nya! Why does he hate cats so much?!"

"I'm not him so don't ask me! Let me finish, Rin!"

"Ah, Maki-chan wasn't done yet? Sorry..."

"Anyway. The interesting thing about the concept is that the box is in a state of multiple possibilities until its contents are observed," Maki continued as she began searching for her crimson umbrella among the multitude of different colours within the umbrella racks at the entrance. "And when the box is finally opened, all those possibilities coalesce into the one that is observed. But, if the trap had to have been triggered, it could have taken place at any time during the hour."

Having successfully located her own teal umbrella, the orange-haired girl frowned while trying to puzzle over what her classmate was saying. "Rin still doesn't quite understand nya..."

"In quantum physics, the observation determines the result, Rin. But the result had to come from a process that had _already_ taken place by the time the observation was made. To put it simply, the action that takes place in the future, determines what had already happened in the past."

"... That doesn't make any sense at all..."

"Well, it's just a thought experiment so don't think too hard about it. It's not something one really learns in high school anyway."

"I knew it! Maki-chan is too smart for us after all!"

"I- That's not true!"

"It's a good thing so don't fret over it Maki-chan! But next time Rin needs help with schoolwork, Maki-chan will have to tutor Rin, okay?"

"That's... mou! Not that I mind or anything!"

Rin grinned widely as she pushed open the glass doors and stepped outside. There was just something incredibly cute about watching Maki blush, that she couldn't resist teasing her every opportunity she got. Which of course, came in buckets with how socially awkward the tsundere was. "Uwah, the rain got even heavier..."

"Let's just hurry back to my home. And... I guess I won't mind if you stay till the rain stops..." the redhead trailed off as she stepped out into the pouring rain, only to be intercepted by an orange blur of movement that sent her off-balance for a moment, splattering in the falling droplets.

...

"Rin, what are you doing?"

"Let Rin use your umbrella, Maki-chan!"

Squeezed under the same umbrella and so _impossibly close_ to her classmate, Maki couldn't help but splutter and clutch the umbrella closer to herself, which had the opposite effect of sending Rin scooting even closer to avoid the rain. "You- you're already carrying an umbrella in your hand, Rin! Just use your own!"

"But Rin would rather be under Maki-chan's umbrella than Rin's umbrella!"

"What on earth do you even mean by that..."

"Rainy days are boring, so Rin has to find ways to make them interesting nya!"

"I don't get you at all... I'm just going to use my umbrella by myself, so you should just do the same already!"

"Thanks Maki-chan! Let's go let's go~"

"Hey, Rin! Were you even listening?! Just get out from under my umbrella already!"

"Rin doesn't wanna~"

"Ah mou! I also don't want it like this either!" Despite her words, Maki had already started walking once again with Rin in tow. Not wanting to get wet despite her antics, the catlike girl huddled closer to Maki. This close to each other, Rin could feel the warmth emanating from the other girl through their thin clothes, especially since she always forwent the yellow vest that was part of the school's summer uniforms.

"Don't be such a cheapskate, Maki-chan!" Closing her hand around Maki's grip on the umbrella, Rin wasn't quite sure whether the flush of red she triggered was from her words or her actions. "It's just an umbrella, so it's fine!"

"I'm not cheap! And I'm not a troublesome person either!"

Rin scratched her head in puzzlement, at the words that had been taken out of her mouth even before she said them. "Ehh? How come Maki-chan knew what Rin was about to say?.. This rainy day is getting interesting nya! It's just like those pictures Rin saw on the internet!"

"Pictures? What pictures?"

"The one of the couple under an umbrella in a blizzard! It was famous so Maki-chan should have seen it nya! The one where the guy says 'Being in the snow with my lover like this immerses me in a special feeling. I like it.'"

Unfortunately, Maki probably didn't manage to catch most of Rin's sentence as she managed to slip upon hearing the word 'lover', landing herself in a puddle. Having let go of her classmate's hand just in time with her brilliant reflexes, Rin barely managed to avoid falling as well, even managing to keep the umbrella upright and herself dry.

"Maki-chan! Are you okay?"

Accepting her classmate's hand back up, the composer winced as she felt the tender spots where her body had collided with the floor. And shivered from her brief moment in the soaking rain. "Jeez! It's all your fault for saying something so silly, Rin!"

"It wasn't silly!" The catlike girl's voice carried a tone of frustration within it, enough for her to lose her verbal tic.

For a brief moment, amethyst and topaz eyes clashed within the small space under the umbrella, unspoken words hanging heavy in the air. Rin could barely feel the cold with the weight of her emotions at the moment, at the feelings she just couldn't understand or put into words.

The world faded away with all its sensations and sounds, as two pairs of eyes found themselves lost in each other, yet unwilling to give in.

At least, until Maki sneezed, letting out a small groan as her body trembled involuntarily.

"Ah, Maki-chan really needs to get dry soon..."

Somehow, the remaining walk to the Nishikino Mansion felt even more tense than it had the day before.

* * *

"So... this is the music- ah-choo! Bleargh..." Maki was starting to make rather unladylike noises unfitting her character, as she shoved a CD in Rin's general direction.

"Don't force yourself, Maki-chan... you really need to take a bath now before you fall sick!"

Maki emerged from rummaging in her closet, only to frown at the catlike girl sitting docilely in the desk chair. "Don't... don't mess anything up, okay? Ah-choo!"

"Just go, Maki-chan! Or do you want Rin to accompany you in the bath?" Despite the severity of the situation, Rin just couldn't resist getting in one last jab. The only reply she received was a towel flung straight into her face, and the sight of her classmate red as a tomato once more.

"Wh- what are you saying! Don't be silly, Rin! Just dry yourself off with that and I'll be right back!" With a last parting sneeze and a huffy slam of her ensuite bathroom door, Rin's classmate disappeared from sight.

Rin dried off her hair and limbs with the towel and hung it against the chair arm, slumping backwards in thought.

The rain hadn't let up at all the entire way here; if anything it had actually intensified. She hadn't really gotten wet, but rather than because of her reflexes, it seemed like Maki had been tilting the umbrella more towards her to ensure she stayed dry... The logical thing to do would've been to just open up her own umbrella, but that somehow felt like a loss and a really bad idea after their almost-argument. So the two of them had stayed huddled together under the same umbrella for the entire trip.

Not that she minded the warmth, really, even as bits of rainwater seeped into her own clothing from Maki's soaked uniform.

And the house had been seemingly empty when they arrived, with Maki leading the way to her room as if it was normal. When queried, she had simply explained that her mother was helping out at the hospital, and the chef was probably still buying ingredients. Somehow the thought of coming home to such a large, empty house in the middle of a storm seemed too lonely to bear, and Rin had grabbed onto Maki's hand as they ascended the stairs. The redhead had accepted it without a word, though the fleeting sidewards glance and blush said more than any words she could possibly utter.

The sound of running water interrupted her train of thought, and Rin was suddenly very much aware that only one door stood between her and her classmate who was clearly in the nude and holy-crap-why-was-she-even-thinking-about-this. Hurriedly fanning herself, Rin tried to divert her attention, casting about the room to no avail.

It was just Maki's style. Yes, that was it. Rin definitely wasn't thinking of it in a weird way at all, she was just envious of Maki's great proportions and how that impossibly slim waist widened out into such lovely curvaceous hips...

"Nyaaa!" This time, Rin physically leapt out of the chair at her thoughts, disturbed at just how vivid the mental imagery was. It was just unfair and outrageous how Maki had the slimmest waist out of everyone in Muse, even more so than Nico who logically should have been the one to own that title with her childlike figure. But the last time they had all bathed together, she had gotten a good look at everyone-

_Ehh? When did we do that?.._

The catlike girl paused in her actions, frozen on the spot as she searched through her memories that seemed rather oddly hazy and fragmented. Images of a beach house, of fooling around on the sand and in the waves, all blurred together in a dreamlike quality within her head.

...

"Rin must have dreamed it nya!" Rin finally concluded as she slapped a fist on top of a palm in realization. "But wow, that dream felt so real Rin was quite confused..."

"What are you even on about?" came an irate voice as the bathroom door opened once again, with an unusually red-faced Maki emerging from the ensuite bathroom. Judging by the fact Rin hadn't said or done anything to embarrass her in the last couple of minutes, she assumed her classmate's condition wasn't looking so good.

"Nothing nya! But Maki-chan looks really ill, you should get some rest!"

"I'm fine, I just need to take some pills- ah choo!" Having her sentences punctuated with sneezes did little for Maki's credibility in assuring Rin she was fine, and her frown grew as she rummaged in her drawers for cold medicine which she downed immediately.

"That's no good, Maki-chan, you need to sleep as well!" Not taking no for an answer, Rin placed her hands on the tsundere's shoulders and began pushing her towards the bed.

Too weak to resist, the redhead soon found herself being tucked beneath the covers by Rin's nimble hands. For a minute, all she could do was sink into her bed in a dizzy haze, as her classmate made sure she was comfortable and placed a hand on her forehead.

"Looks like signs of a slight fever nya... Maki-chan should go see a doctor later tonight!"

"... I see doctors every night, Rin. It's kind of inevitable when we're living in the same house."

"Oops. Maki-chan's parents, huh... Ehehe. Rin kind of forgot. At least Maki-chan will be well taken care of then. But if the music was already done, you could've just passed it to Rin at school... Then we wouldn't have had to walk through that storm if you already weren't feeling well."

Rin's words seemed to have struck a chord, as Maki tilted her head away from the girl. "I certainly would've been fine if someone hadn't jumped under my umbrella and said silly stuff. I was going to let you listen to the music first as well, so school wasn't an option."

"But there's a computer in the clubroom!"

"... That... that annoying girl is always in the clubroom. I don't-" Interrupted again by another sneeze, Maki took a moment to compose herself before continuing. "I don't want her to get the wrong idea."

"Hmm? You mean Nico-chan?"

Still averting her gaze, the composer elaborated in a flustered voice. "It's not like I care what she thinks or anything! It's just that she would never stop talking about it, the song was supposed to be a secret and she would just ask all sorts of questions and- it just wasn't a good idea!"

That particular reaction didn't quite sit well with Rin for some reason. She felt her heart tightening, her curiosity both perked and dampened, and a twisting of her stomach that she had come to associate with bad ramen stalls. _Why... why does it hurt?..._

"... why..." The word slipped out of her mouth beyond her control, with her head bent forward and her hair covering her eyes. _Why do I feel betrayed?_

Even with the air-conditioning humming in the background keeping the temperature constant, Maki couldn't help but feel it drop a couple of degrees. "Why what?.."

"WHY IS IT ALWAYS ABOUT NICO-CHAN!"

Taken aback by the usually-cheerful girl's sudden outburst, all Maki could do was lay there paralysed, staring blankly at Rin who had shot to her feet.

"It's always about her! Maki-chan is always so close to her and you two talk all the time and she's always teasing you and everyone thinks you two should be together and and and-" Rin couldn't quite figure out just what was so _wrong_ about everything, even the words coming out of her mouth sounded ridiculous to her but it all felt like it had been pent up within her for a very long time. Even if the words weren't exactly what she wanted to say, it felt a relief to finally get it out. "It's just not fair!"

"Rin... That's not how it is at all-"

"Then how is it!"

"It's... she's... Nico-chan is just..." The words trailed off emptily into the air, leaving Maki gaping her mouth open and closed like a goldfish struggling to breathe in the atmosphere.

The usage of the endearing honorific 'Nico-chan' didn't slip past Rin though. After all this time she knew Maki as well as she did Hanayo, and the prideful girl _never_ used honorifics for anyone. When did this change happen? How did she miss it?

Was she too late?

Feeling a knife twist in her gut, Rin wiped at her eyes and did what she did best. She ran.

"Rin!" Just like the day before, Maki found herself chasing the rapidly retreating footsteps of the other girl, only this time she was even slower as she just couldn't catch her breath with her cold. By the time she had reached the bottom of the stairs, the house echoed with the sound of the front door slamming.

Despite the futility, she pulled her weakened body the last few steps forward and opened the door. A gust of wind and rain blew in, sending shivers running through her body.

Nothing. No Otonokizaka school uniform or ruffled orange hair in sight.

Closing the door, Maki slumped down with her back against it and began to cry.

* * *

**Author's Note: Almost a month. =X I've been really busy with a new semester starting in my university, plus new roles I took on. And admittedly I've mostly lost my muse for these stories. I still love Love Live! with all my heart, but the words just aren't flowing anymore... Trying to counter that by having fun while writing so things may seem a little more crackier and fourth-wall-breaking.**

**Like a blatant 4to6 reference. Incidentally I really love their new single.  
And a Schrödinger's Cat explanation. Is this important? Not here. Not now.  
****Copied the umbrella scene almost wholesale from School Idol Festival Chapter 19 Part 2 with a bit of a twist to keep it flowing.  
And a "special feeling meme". For the record this meme was spawned on the day of the Love Live! 4th concert, so it does have some special meaning to us Love Livers!, especially the ones who got stuck at the Super Saitama Arena after the concert that night hehe.****  
**

**And references to all the things that had already happened in the anime. Again, not important here and now.**

**Anyway, thanks to everyone who's reviewed or PM-ed me since the last time! I'm sorry to keep you all waiting so long, thank you all for the kind words. It's kind of hard not to feel competitive on this site, and it's always felt like crap getting less reviews and follows than the rest. But you guys reminded me that I should really just focus on two things: quality, and having fun, so I'll try to keep that in mind from now on. (Though of course there's no point in writing stuff no one wants to read, so keep those reviews coming! xD)**


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